Page 26 of The Marriage Negotiation

Jake snorted and waved at hand at me. "I like this guy."

Patrick smiled down at me. "I like him, too."

I glanced down, my face so hot I was sure it was blazing red. Patrick had been so sincere with his words, so honest. I couldn't help but hope he was telling the truth.

We'd spent a lot of time talking and getting to know each other on the road, and more than one night in bed together. It wasn't a great romance—yet—but it was a start.

"We were just going to go up and check out the condo," Patrick said as he looked up, "I wanted to get a feel for the place before we start bringing in boxes."

"I can help with that." Jake grinned as he pulled out his cell phone with one hand and held the other one out to Patrick. "Give me your truck keys and I'll arrange for some people to starthauling your stuff up to your condo. You just have to tell them where to put it."

"I'll take that deal," Patrick replied. "We've been on the road for several days. We're both burnt."

I was with Patrick. Granted, traveling across the country had been a lot of fun, but I was ready to stay in one place for awhile.

"Go check out your new place," Jake said. "I need to make a few phone calls and get some people over here to move your crap."

"Excuse me very much." Patrick stuck his nose in the air. "These boxes are from Texas. It's not crap, its bullshit."

Yeah, I had nothing for that.

Jake's laugh jingled in my ears as Patrick led me toward the bay of elevators. We were headed up to the tenth floor. I hoped the view from our condo was better than it had been on the street. I'd like to see a little something besides concrete and glass.

I was impressed with how clean and efficient everything was. There was no garbage lying around, not bugs that shouldn't be there. I hadn't even spotted a homeless person on the street. Everything also seemed to be in good working order.

So far, I was a fan of the place.

"So, that was your friend that owns the lab?"

"That's him."

"Seems like a nice guy."

"Jake and my other frat brothers helped keep me in med school. They always made sure I had food to eat and a way to and from school. Jake even purchased some of my school books and labs when I couldn't afford it. I basically owe them for keeping me alive long enough to graduate."

I swallowed tightly as I glanced at Patrick. "Your parents didn't help?"

There was a lingering sadness in Patrick's eyes as he shook his head. "They were too busy with Peter. He was being trained to take over for my father, remember? He getting his business degree was more important than whatever I was doing, especially since I didn't want to go into the family business."

My brow wrinkled as I frowned in confusion. "Peter never finished his business degree. If I remember correctly, he flunked out of school like three times or something."

"Oh, I am aware."

I snorted rudely. "Your parents really need to get a clue."

"I've been saying that for years," Patrick stated. "It's gotten to the point that I just don't care anymore. Peter is going to keep fucking up and my parents are going to keep making excuses for him and bailing him out."

"Well, on the upside, basically everything you have in life now is due to your own hard work."

The sadness faded from Patrick's eyes as he glanced down at me, replaced by a hint of mischievousness. "Does that include you?"

"Yes and no."

Patrick cocked an eyebrow.

"If Peter hadn't fucked up yet again, we might not have been given the opportunity to get married. That being said, the idea of us two getting married was all yours, so you get credit for that."

Patrick leaned down toward me and whispered in a conspirator tone, "Should we send him flowers?"

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